After 16 years at the helm of The Daily Show host Jon Stewart is stepping down, why is it a big deal and what has made the show so important?
The new that Jon Stewart is stepping down as the host of the comedy news TV programme The Daily Show has sent fans into despair.
The 52-year-old has fronted the Comedy Central programme since 1999 and been called the “the most trusted man in America” because of his satirical political coverage of the world's biggest news events.
When news broke this morning fans from all backgrounds took to Twitter to bemoan his retirement.
The BBC's economic Robert Peston wrote “Terrible terrible terrible that Daily Show's Jon Stewart is retiring. What is there to watch now?” while American Idol host Ryan Seacrest said “jon stewart, thx for all you've done to make us think, learn, and laugh”.
Stewart's appeal has been more than to make viewers laugh but to inform them on how the world IS rather than simply cover what is going on.
When Americans were asked in a 2007 poll to name the journalist they most admired, Stewart, came in at No. 4, tied with the real news anchors from NBC, CNN and CBS.
Here is a reminder of why Jon Stewart matters.
Young People
In a 2012 survey, the Pew Research Center for People and the Press found that 39 per cent of "The Daily Show's" regular viewers were between 18 and 29, but the group makes up just 23 per cent of the public as a whole.
In an age where political engagement among the young is falling the fact that so many watch a comedy show where most of the material is political has go to be encouraging.
President Barack Obama
In contrast to the repeated knocking of the Bush administration when Obama arrived The Daily Show, like much of the country, were excited by his fresh approach and what it might promise.
And while campaigning for the presidency Obama appeared on the Daily Show as he reached out to younger voters.
He returned as the first sitting U.S. president to appear and Stewart mocked him as a shadow of his 2008 persona echoing the views of many that he had not lived up to the promise he once showed.
Stewart joked: "You wouldn't say 'Yes we can, with certain conditions,'".
Many have felt Obama could have been a more impressive president and Jon Stewart does not hold back from criticising someone he once backed.
9/11
A tearful and emotionally-charged monologue signalled the return of the Daily Show after the terrorist attack in New York.
Stewart described how the view from his apartment used to be of the twin towers of the World Trade Centre but was now of the Statue of Liberty, “you can't beat that”.
In doing so he seemed to speak for many Americans who refused to be bowed by terror.
George Bush
When George W. Bush had the 2000 election handed to him by the Supreme Court after controversy about the voting system Stewart did not hold back in crying foul.
Stewart showed a clip of Bush saying "I was not elected to serve one party" before quipping "you were not elected".
Using his public platform Stewart was able to say what many who had voted for vice-President Al Gore were thinking.
FOX News
The notorious right wing channel comes in for plenty of stick from Stewart and there are regular spats between him and presenters of the show.
In many ways it is like a right wing and left wing political argument but Stewart is always looking for laughs – along the way viewers are reminded how different channels coverage of a news event can give a completely different impression of facts.
Most recently he criticized Fox News personalities for complaining about how the events of Ferguson were being portrayed as a racial matter, adding: “Race is there and it is a constant. You’re tired of hearing about it. Imagine how f—ing exhausting it is living it.”
Since the beginning of The Daily Show, Stewart has spoken against news shows for biased coverage so much so that many say his own show is more informative.
The Royal Family
Highlighting the fascination American television news has with the Royals has given Stewart plenty of material.
To get around contractual restrictions preventing networks to use royal wedding footage in a satirical way The Daily Show screened an animated simulation - of Kate and Will’s walk down the aisle past a line of notable figures, including Harry Potter, David Beckham, Winston Churchill, Adolf Hitler, William Shakespeare and Paddington Bear.
In another section Her Majesty's Secret Cervix the show cut to clips of other channels attempting to fill time while they waited for news of the birth – cue coverage of nothing much happening.
By poking fun at sometime ridiculous levels of coverage given to trivial events Stewart makes the world seem a smaller place.
Crisis in Israfghyianonanaq and Mess O' Potamia and Gitmo
Regular viewers were treated to a sideways look at American foreign policy disasters using these “catch all” phrases to cover events in the Middle East.
Using an Elmo hand puppet equipped with a beard Stewart has repeatedly drawn attention to the alleged torture of prisoners in the US base at Guantanamo Bay
During one segment Stewart tortured Gitmo by "waterboarding" him, prompting Gitmo to confess that Big Bird is a spy working for the Mossad.
By using his comedy show to discuss foreign policy alongside interviews with celebrities Stewart engages an audience many of whom do not watch traditional news bulletins.
